Kalita Wave vs Melodrip

“I have the Melodrip, the Cafemasy and a MHW-3BOMBER which is similar to the Timemore and almost certainly made by the same company. My recommendation? Bite the bullet and buy the Melodrip on a metal handle. Having the drip assist fixed on the dripper might seem convenient - but it is the opposite. Here’s why: 1. Fixed/attached assists are set to a fixed height. This gives you less control over your brew. If you find your draw downs going too quickly you can raise the stick mounted Melodrip higher to create more (but still well managed) agitation and visa versa. You can also get much lower to the bed and hover a few MM above the waterline with the stick mounted Melodrip. 2. You can move the stick mounted Melodrip in a circle as you pour to more evenly saturate the bed. The fixed drip assists only drop in the center and the outer parts of the bed aren’t as evenly saturated/agitated. 3. Drip assists hold 2-6 grams of water in them, and you can only get the final amount out by shaking it. If you have a fixed drip assist, it’s annoying and it also allows for that 2-6 grams of water to cool down between pours and affect brew temp a little. With the stick mount, pour until I’m within a few grams of my desired pour weight - then just give it a little shake. With a fixed drip assist it’s a hassle as your scale weight changes when you remove it, and it’s far more awkward to try to shake out between pours. With the stick Melodrip - whatever the scale says your weight is, is the actual water weight. 4. Speaking of weight - if you use a ratio/pour weight capable scale or want to do so in the future - the fixed devices are a pain in the ass. You have to set and zero the scale with the drip assist on it, before putting coffee in, then put your coffee in and affix the drip assist. It’s not a terribly pleasant workflow. 5. You get a full visual on your coffee bed without a fixed drip assist covering it, which allows you to better see (and enjoy) the process, monitor the amount of gas release on bloom, better see and manage your water level height and agitation, and allows you to get your nose closer to the brew throughout the process - cause if you’re not sniffing your bloom/brew - you’re doing it wrong. Adding to the above - Ray (the owner of Melodrip) is one of the nicest and most approachable guys in this entire industry. If you send him a note on IG - he’ll geek out to the max with you, and he’s making a lot less $ on these than you’d think. He is not some big corporation or a random Amazon seller from China - he’s one of us and this is a passion project. Supporting innovators like Ray is extremely important - especially when it’s a $17 difference to get the original from the man himself versus an Amazon knock off (I bought the knock off after the Original as I wanted to compare them and see if I liked the fixed assist). In summation - the Melodrip (original) on a metal handle is the drip assist I use almost exclusively - and it’s absolutely worth the premium over the competitors. Not only is it worth the premium, but it also feels good supporting the guy who created it.”

“Flat bottom brewing is the logical progression, though there are a bunch of options and ways to brew with them. Kalita is the standard bearer for good reason, though I’d steer around the normal stainless steel version. Of course there are many others. Some are mostly trying to overcome the clogging problems of the stainless steel version, which also can be overcome simply (and often less expensively) by selecting glass, ceramic, or Tsubame versions. Some are aiming for filter negotiation / smooshing for lower bypass brewing. That’s legit, but can be accomplished in the OG too, and some of those alternatives become a little too focused / one trick ponies. Some focus on being cheap plastic alternatives, and succeed by that measure. Some offer a variety of alternatives, though IMO that’s largely something to waste time with / get confused by. Seems like most who use such systems eventually settle into one main mode of use, making the supposed versatility superfluous. And while their eventual choice may be structurally different in appearance, it probably ends up not that different in terms of what ends up in the cup. Because unless a dripper is seriously flawed, they all perform the same basic task of securely holding a piece of wet paper with ground coffee. The differences in how they do that can matter, but tweaks to how the brewing is done can bring larger changes than the filter holder normally will, making the differences trivial in comparison. Which is a lot of words to say, don’t overthink it. You’ll end up with a shelf full of them no matter what you choose next lol.”